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View Full Version : Forbes: "Your Trekkie Communicator Is Ready"


Janak Parekh
03-28-2004, 09:45 PM
<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.forbes.com/technology/2004/03/16/cx_ah_0316chips.html' target='_blank'>http://www.forbes.com/technology/20..._0316chips.html</a><br /><br /></div>"It's no accident that the conference rooms at Vocera Communications headquarters in Cupertino, Calif., are named after characters from the Star Trek universe--Kirk, Spock and Picard. Just as the communicators that Captain Kirk carried down to alien planets in the 1960s version of the Viacom TV show foreshadowed a world with ubiquitous mobile telephones, the two-ounce badge central to the Vocera Communications System was inspired at least in part by the 'com badges' that appeared on later versions of the show. Just as Captain Picard would do, Vocera badge wearers can touch the slim device they wear on their uniforms, say who they want to talk to and, assuming that person is wearing his badge, be connected."<br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/web/2003/parekh-20040328-VoceraBadge.gif" /><br /><br />I have just one thing to say: this is so cool. :D

c38b2
03-28-2004, 10:02 PM
I hope they make one that looks like a combadge for us trekkies! :D

OSUKid7
03-28-2004, 10:11 PM
lol...very cool 8)

Jon Westfall
03-28-2004, 10:52 PM
Now I hope these don't have the same quirks as star trek communicators. I mean, to anyone who's watched Next Generation, haven't you noticed that:

* Sometimes the tap of the button is not needed, you're connected already (however, if the person wishes to say something like "Now what... " and then press, the other party does not hear the "now what" line)

* They look pretty cheap upclose, like they were made of painted plastic ;)

Of course, it would be great if they could implement the following Trek features:

* You never needed to charge one.
* They never fell off, even in the roughest of fights.
* Yet they came off instantly without any visible adhesive marks.
* They had other uses (i.e. GPS)

Ah, a world more closely resembling star trek.. what more could I ask for.

Zack Mahdavi
03-28-2004, 10:55 PM
Wow, this sounds very interesting.. and it looks like it's actually getting adopted by hospitals. I think a lot of IT departments might find this useful as well.

Aerestis
03-28-2004, 10:59 PM
Ah, a world more closely resembling star trek.. what more could I ask for.

haha

PR.
03-29-2004, 12:05 AM
This is nothing like a Star Trek communicator, I can't stand on another planet and call home to let them know I will be late for dinner, can I?! :D

Wiggster
03-29-2004, 12:27 AM
This is nothing like a Star Trek communicator, I can't stand on another planet and call home to let them know I will be late for dinner, can I?! :D

You say that and you haven't even BEEN to another planet, have you?

Another person who speaks without trying it first :roll:

Jonathan1
03-29-2004, 01:59 AM
This is nothing like a Star Trek communicator, I can't stand on another planet and call home to let them know I will be late for dinner, can I?! :D

Neither can the Next Gen communicator. Its operational distance is, according to my Star Trek: TNG tech manual, 311 miles between comm badges. For communicating to the ship the ship is the active participant in the sending and receiving process.

This concludes your Star Trek geek lesson for the day. Tomorrow: Yield configurations for quantum torpedoes. :D

T-Will
03-29-2004, 02:42 AM
Wow, this is a really cool idea!

So wait a minute...when an away team was on a planet, the Enterprise was never more than 311 miles from them? How can that be when the ship is on the other side of the planet in orbit...or was the Enterprise always in a synchronous orbit? Also, does a shuttlecraft act as a WiFi booster so they can communicate farther than 311 miles apart?
:robot:

dollardr
03-29-2004, 03:02 AM
We've been using these in a pilot project (120 Badges) at the hospital where I work. We are eventually going to roll out 600 badges.

Reduces alot of the phone/beeper tag between nurses and doctors. Can also send out group announcements (i.e. to all the staff in the in the emergency room). Other examples include find "On-call Neurologist" using it for patient transport services, etc....

It has been very well received.

Jon Westfall
03-29-2004, 03:12 AM
Wow, this is a really cool idea!

So wait a minute...when an away team was on a planet, the Enterprise was never more than 311 miles from them? How can that be when the ship is on the other side of the planet in orbit...or was the Enterprise always in a synchronous orbit? Also, does a shuttlecraft act as a WiFi booster so they can communicate farther than 311 miles apart?
:robot:

Didn't you see Jonathan1's post? The ship is an active participant, meaning it increases the range of communication. When you've got a matter/antimatter reactor pumping out countless megajoules of power harnessed in a controlled reaction utilizind dilithium crystals, you can get enough power to easily extend that range to any point while in a standard orbit.

(Sorry, I'll quiet the star trek trivia winner inside of me now)

David Prahl
03-29-2004, 03:29 AM
&lt;wet blanket>
dadarkmcse, you spelled megajoules wrong.

This product was on C|Net's website last summer, and included a demo video from a trade show. Why the huge time gap?
&lt;/wet blanket>

Jon Westfall
03-29-2004, 04:36 AM
&lt;wet blanket>
dadarkmcse, you spelled megajoules wrong.

This product was on C|Net's website last summer, and included a demo video from a trade show. Why the huge time gap?
&lt;/wet blanket>

From Clerks:

Randal Graves: And, I hope it feels good.
Indecisive Video Customer: You hope WHAT feels good?
Randal Graves: I hope it feels so good to be right. There's nothing more exhilarating than pointing out the shortcomings of others, is there?

(posted with a smile :) )

I thought that looked wrong... gotta stop letting internet slang creep into my personal lexicon.

akirasprt
03-29-2004, 05:26 AM
From all the new gadgets that are coming out, it seems like the real world is slowly catching up to science fiction.

David Prahl
03-29-2004, 05:31 AM
From all the new gadgets that are coming out, it seems like the real world is slowly catching up to science fiction.

At least the whole Borg/"Resistance is Futile" part! :lol:
http://images.slashdot.org/topics/topicms.gif

Zack Mahdavi
03-29-2004, 06:33 AM
From all the new gadgets that are coming out, it seems like the real world is slowly catching up to science fiction.

lol.. i got a good laugh out of that one. I don't know though. Have you seen the Powermac G5? It looks like a really cool looking cheesegrater at first... isn't that sort of midevil times-ish? :D

bjornkeizers
03-29-2004, 09:39 AM
**WARNING**

This thread exceeds the maximum allowable number of Trek fans :D


Very, very cool. Bet your ass I'm first in line to get a set :D I wonder what Gene would say if he could see this... We're making Star Trek a reality, 200 years early or so!

jasondearyou
03-29-2004, 09:58 AM
Does anyone know the price and everything for this communicator?

cause, i'll be going on an away mission to the... ok, i'll just be going round the... ah, just give me the price.

Powelly
03-29-2004, 05:10 PM
I think a lot of IT departments might find this useful as well.

Are you insane? last thing I need is to make it easier for the users to get hold of me, I can just imagine the following scenario

Sat at desk
boo de boo "help my printers jammed"

Sat on toilet
boo de boo "hello, Ive forgot my password"

Having Lunch
boo de boo "er hi, that thingy still wont whatsit"

Asleep in the middle of the night
boo de boo "hi sorry to bother u but I just got home and house alarm isnt working"


ARRRRRRRRGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!

OSUKid7
03-29-2004, 05:19 PM
lol, no, but it could be useful just for IT staff to talk to eachother. I did an internship at Time Warner and their IT department uses nextel phones to talk to eachother at times.

possmann
03-29-2004, 05:45 PM
:drool:
Instant messaging for voice... cool

joelevi
03-29-2004, 05:53 PM
I think a lot of IT departments might find this useful as well.

Are you insane? last thing I need is to make it easier for the users to get hold of me, I can just imagine the following scenario

Sat at desk
boo de boo "help my printers jammed"

Sat on toilet
boo de boo "hello, Ive forgot my password"

Having Lunch
boo de boo "er hi, that thingy still wont whatsit"

Asleep in the middle of the night
boo de boo "hi sorry to bother u but I just got home and house alarm isnt working"


ARRRRRRRRGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!

This is exactly why I got rid of my cell phone!!! I don't want to be THAT accessible!

It's bad enough to be reading an eBook in the john and have an IM pop up on MSN messenger!

Ryan Joseph
03-29-2004, 06:25 PM
Ah, Trek Talk. I love it! I'm a Star Trek fan and I love seeing the technology world catching up with the sci-fi world. It seems like every time I look, something is being released that gets us a little closer.

Actually, it seems at times that Star Trek is behind the current tech. I was watching a rerun of Voyager the other day and someone was handed a PADD and told to take it to the bridge. I looked at my brother and said, "Well, I guess they don't have email on Voyager." Then, later in the same show, someone else was handed a PADD and told to transfer the contents to the main computer. The crewmember then walked over to a wall display and set the PADD down. I said, "I guess they don't have Wi-Fi either." :wink:

The world is getting cooler and cooler...I'm glad I get to be a part of it! :mrgreen:

Zack Mahdavi
03-29-2004, 07:08 PM
I think a lot of IT departments might find this useful as well.

Are you insane? last thing I need is to make it easier for the users to get hold of me, I can just imagine the following scenario

Sat at desk
boo de boo "help my printers jammed"

Sat on toilet
boo de boo "hello, Ive forgot my password"

Having Lunch
boo de boo "er hi, that thingy still wont whatsit"

Asleep in the middle of the night
boo de boo "hi sorry to bother u but I just got home and house alarm isnt working"


ARRRRRRRRGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!

This is exactly why I got rid of my cell phone!!! I don't want to be THAT accessible!

It's bad enough to be reading an eBook in the john and have an IM pop up on MSN messenger!

hehe... I'm a sysadmin, and there are times when I just want to smack some of the users. Yeah, you all are right... being more accessible is a bad idea.

Steven Cedrone
03-29-2004, 07:18 PM
http://www.vocera.com/images/products_system_archi.jpg

These things use WIFI! I wonder if they can use a WIFI infrastructure that is already in place? It looks like we're talking about standard off the shelf WAPs here...

Steve

Jon Westfall
03-29-2004, 07:26 PM
Ah, Trek Talk. I love it! I'm a Star Trek fan and I love seeing the technology world catching up with the sci-fi world. It seems like every time I look, something is being released that gets us a little closer.

Actually, it seems at times that Star Trek is behind the current tech. I was watching a rerun of Voyager the other day and someone was handed a PADD and told to take it to the bridge. I looked at my brother and said, "Well, I guess they don't have email on Voyager." Then, later in the same show, someone else was handed a PADD and told to transfer the contents to the main computer. The crewmember then walked over to a wall display and set the PADD down. I said, "I guess they don't have Wi-Fi either." :wink:

The world is getting cooler and cooler...I'm glad I get to be a part of it! :mrgreen:

you have to make the people you keep on the ship solely for unplanned deaths on away missions feel useful somehow!

cholcomb
03-29-2004, 08:16 PM
This is not for the normal small business or home user.

The system can use any 802.11b network, you don't need to buy special AP's. But that last time I talked to them you can only get it with a minimuim of 75 client license. can you say $20k plus...

Also the badges use voice recognition so a badge for User A will not work with User B's voice. If you tie the server into a phone line you can even go to your web page and program phone numbers to dial.

It aslo has location based services. So you can say who is on the second floor, and it will tell you and ask if you would like to call them.

Their new version also let's oyu have this system in remote offices, so you can be in houston and call some one in your california office with out paying long distance charges.

This system is very cool, but with the current pricing it is only for large enterprise companies.

OSUKid7
03-29-2004, 09:23 PM
http://www.vocera.com/images/products_system_archi.jpg

These things use WIFI! I wonder if they can use a WIFI infrastructure that is already in place? It looks like we're talking about standard off the shelf WAPs here...

Steve
awesome :) I wonder if it uses regular VoIP/H.323. If it does, then I bet you can call someone from a H.323 application such as netmeeting.

SteveNYC
03-29-2004, 11:36 PM
This is exactly why I got rid of my cell phone!!! I don't want to be THAT accessible!

It's bad enough to be reading an eBook in the john and have an IM pop up on MSN messenger!So true. I dumped my Nextel at work when my boss kept trying to contact me while I was on the can at work. The guys in the bathroom laughed. I didn't.

Ok, maybe I laughed a little.

Heck, my boss even argued with me when I gave back the phone. I have a pager... good enough.

I agree that accessibility is crucial, but it has it's limits.

That being said.... this is a VERY cool device.... VERY cool.

dollardr
03-30-2004, 04:32 AM
A couple of thoughts to some of the replies. We use Vocera where I work:

1. The badges are inter-changable. You can log into the system with any badge - there is not a one-to-one ratio between users and badges.

2. It uses a standard 802.11 network, but it took a lot of fine tuning to ensure QOS. We are very careful about data applications/devices affecting bandwidth which could impact the VOIP that Vocera uses. Our data portion of the wireless network is controlled and limited via firewalls.

3. One of the biggest challenges is the sight-survey and ensuring continuous coverage. 200+ access points in an older building with 8 floors with construction impediments and access points interferring with one another was very challenging to ensure the coverage that is required for this type of application. The dreaded "dead spot" can severely impact the effectiveness of this application.

4. The voice recognition is very good and is controlled by a "genie" when you logged into the system. She prompts you for your name and let's you know if you have issued the wrong command or if someone is unavailable.

5. You can control who is available on the system to other users and create groups of users by an area or departments. Users can also put themselves in meeting mode so they are not disturbed and can retrieve messages at a later time.

6. The location function is based on the nearest access point so it makes sense to name your AP's by geographical location.

7. It is truly a hands-free device. Just wear it and talk. It works best if its hanging around a lanard about 6 inches from your mouth.

8. You can call outside lines and outside callers can call a special extension on your PBX and then connect to the person wearing the badge via a voice command.

9. Its been very well received by the majority of users. Some required additional hand holding and training but overall its been great. Part of the training required users to be reminded that they are not on a private handset. While its hard to over hear a conversation you can not treat the conversation as private. There is an earbud that is available.

Next challenge - integrating the new Motorla cell phones that will also support VOIP!!

OSUKid7
03-30-2004, 04:42 AM
dollardr - that's some great information :) thanks!

dollardr
03-30-2004, 04:49 AM
dollardr - that's some great information :) thanks!

Did you go to OSU (Oklahoma State U)? Good luck this weekend. I went to and live in Syracuse and last year was the best ever when we won the national championship. Still have to root for UCONN and the Big East. If you didn't go to OSU then my bad!!

OSUKid7
03-30-2004, 04:53 AM
dollardr - that's some great information :) thanks!

Did you go to OSU (Oklahoma State U)? Good luck this weekend. I went to and live in Syracuse and last year was the best ever when we won the national championship. Still have to root for UCONN and the Big East. If you didn't go to OSU then my bad!!
lol...actually it's Ohio (see left under my avatar - "Location: Upper Arlington, OH"). People usually guess Oklahoma and Oregon before Ohio though. ;) :| But actually I'm in high school now...may end up going to OSU (Ohio) though.

dollardr
03-30-2004, 04:58 AM
Wasn't paying attention to your location....even after seeing the duck I should have guessed Oregon......

OSUKid7
03-30-2004, 05:03 AM
Wasn't paying attention to your location....even after seeing the duck I should have guessed Oregon......
should have guessed Oregon? what? lol nah, daffy's just been my avatar for years...not exactly sure why I've kept it. :roll:

anyway, back on topic...cool voip stuff. :) hehe

Jon Westfall
03-30-2004, 05:23 AM
dollardr - does it have any sort of software interface to setup the groups, etc.. or is it all via voice command? I think it would get pretty annoying setting up everything by voice when you may be able to mouse it a lot quicker.

bjornkeizers
03-30-2004, 12:49 PM
dollardr, excellent info!!

This thing has more possibilitys then I could have ever imagined. Screw Star Trek - this is better! 8O

dollardr
03-30-2004, 03:21 PM
dollardr - does it have any sort of software interface to setup the groups, etc.. or is it all via voice command? I think it would get pretty annoying setting up everything by voice when you may be able to mouse it a lot quicker.

There is a back office server that runs an application to manage users and groups and interfaces with our PBX. I don't know much about it as it his managed by our telecomm department. I think there is also a web application that allows end users to modify their own personal settings. We are in pilot mode (120 users) with a planned roll-out of 600 badges so I've only used the devices on limited basis.

I've thought about outfitting my support staff with badges for IT to IT communication but we only have wireless in one facility and we cover a about 20 facilities...

On another thought - I think you can forward your desk phone to the device. I agree with a lot of the other comments though, I am too accessible with my cell phone and this could be worse. But for our clinical staff its very appropriate.

minimage
04-03-2004, 09:47 PM
My manager informed me just this week that our hospital was looking into deploying this. As my group (IS) would have to support this, he said he was looking into seeing if we could have them, as well. Whenever I remember being forced to carry a big, heavy radio (useful mostly for caving in someone's skull), I think this could be a good thing (I just can't resist saying that the radio made my butt look bigger LOL). However, the pessimist in me also remembers being called on same radio while...indisposed, and management wanted to know just why you didn't respond right away.

Yeah, the radio thing flopped. The geeks played with them for a while, but the entire basement was a dead zone for us (and guess where our offices are, and guess where the ER is?), although Physical Plant had sunk an antenna for their group, and could talk in the basement all day long. Now they sit around and collect dust (the radios, not the Physical Plant guys). Is it normal for organizations to stick the IS people in the bowels of buildings, because this was also the case for the last place I worked?

Calculon
04-06-2004, 10:22 PM
dollardr,

Do you think it would be possible to set up some kind of feedback loop to zap those annoying users who would constantly harass tech support people? If so then it could have its use in IT departments.

Just wondering....

:twisted:

Janak Parekh
04-09-2004, 04:07 AM
Do you think it would be possible to set up some kind of feedback loop to zap those annoying users who would constantly harass tech support people? If so then it could have its use in IT departments.
This would be awesome. I could use one.... :mrgreen:

--janak